I've always believed if a restaurant claims to have “The Best” of anything they had better be ready to prove it. This past week, I was driving down Park Street, and a sign on the side of Pele’s Wood Fire jumped out at me. It was as if the clouds had parted, and the sun was only shining on that sign. It read, "Riverside’s Best Happy Hour". Instantly, a smile appeared on my face, and in the words of Cosmo Kramer, “Giddy Up”!

There is no doubt that Pele’s Wood Fire has some of the best food in Jacksonville. Pele’s is a modern Italian-American restaurant, specializing in pizzas, pasta, and much more. On this day, the question wasn’t about the food; it was about the Happy Hour. If you’re 'the best', I want to be blown away.

Right off the bat, Pele’s happy hour is special. A lot of places have deals on drinks during happy hour, but not all have food specials as well. Daily from 3pm to 7pm, you can enjoy $2 domestic bottled beers, half price house wines, $3 well drinks, including Jim Beam and Bacardi, $5 to $6 signature cocktails, and even $3 Jack Daniels shots with any beer purchase. For me, the best was $3 to $4 draft beers with over 50 choices. Their selection covers everything from some of my local favorites to rare finds. I started out with a personal favorite, an Oberon from Bell's Brewing Company, which is out of Comstock, Michigan.

Now that the drinks are taken care of, lets talk about food. On a normal night, Pele’s menu can be pricey compared to other pizza joints. Pasta dishes range from $15 to $25, and pizza can cost as much as $39 for the Chicago style deep dish. For me, the food prices for happy hour were perfect. For $5, you can choose from the Cheese or Margherita Pizzettas, which are personal size pizzas. You can also get Tuscan Fries or Crispy Artichokes for $5 a piece. For $6 you can get any Pizzetta or the Limoncello chicken wings.

On top of great service and a hip atmosphere, the food was amazing. Pele’s Wood Fire didn’t only live up their trusted reputation, they put themselves as a front-runner to be the best.